The Seattle Fire Department responded to a large fire at a homeless encampment near South Weller Street in the Chinatown International District at around 1:15 p.m. Monday, a department spokesperson said, after a cooking fire got out of control.
The fire was about 50 feet by 20 feet. While it was difficult to determine how many tents caught fire, the department spokesperson said at least one tent was burned.
According to a camp resident who only gave the name “Babygirl,” 41, the camp had about eight people in five tents.
“We have nowhere to go and nowhere to stay. We have nothing to stay in,” Babygirl said.
She said the city’s Navigation Team, a team of police and outreach workers, came by and gave the group emergency blankets.
A spokesperson for the Navigation Team did not comment by publication time.